Mac News and Rumors for December 4th

In this week’s edition, we have a resolution in the legal squabbles between AT&T and Verizon in addition to more news about Mac clone manufacturer Psystar. On top of that, we have two amazing announcements from Full Tilt Poker and PartyPoker.

Research Firm Makes Bold Prediction

Recently, Apple announced that it has over 100,000 applications in the App Store for the iPod Touch and iPhone devices. This represents more than three times the number of applications available for platforms such as the Blackberry or Google Android. The New York Times reported that the release of the Apple tablet device will push development needs even higher. The result, according to the sourced research firm’s estimates, is that there will be over 300,000 applications available by the end of next year.

AT&T and Verizon Drop Lawsuits Over Ads

Last week, we reported multiple lawsuits over the advertisements on television between Verizon and AT&T. The Dow Jones Newswire reported that AT&T’s lawsuit against Verizon regarding 3G coverage has been dismissed. The report also states that Verizon has dropped a related lawsuit against AT&T, with experts believing that some sort of mutual agreement has been established.

Psystar Stops Sales of Mac Clones

ComputerWorld has reported that Mac clone maker Psystar has finally stopped offering its line of PC hardware with Mac OS X preinstalled. All models are listed as being out of stock in the aftermath of a legal victory by Apple against the computer reseller. Psystar has agreed to pay almost $2.7 million under the terms of the settlement.

Full Tilt Poker Releases Year-End Bonus

The loyalty rewards program that gives an incentive for everyday play on the world’s second largest poker site just got a little better with the Year-End Bonus promotion for the Iron Man Challenge. Players at Full Tilt Poker can qualify for any of the four Iron Man status levels in December and receive a bonus in January. The bonus is based on the number of months qualified for the Iron Man Challenge during the second half of 2009:

Bronze: $25/month
Silver: $50/month
Gold: $75/month
Iron: $100/month

For example, if you qualified at Gold for four months, Silver one month, and Iron one month, your bonus will be $450. Players are still eligible to receive an Iron Man Year-End Bonus even if they have another active bonus, such as the Holiday Hundred or First-Time Deposit Bonus.

New Full House Promotions at PartyPoker

Many European poker players on Macs are playing at PartyPoker thanks to the site’s web-play option. To end the year, PartyPoker has three promotions to add some incentive to grind the year out in style. The first promotion is the $50,000 Cash Game Race where players can earn money if they finish on a ring game leaderboard. There’s also the STT Jackpots promotion where any player who can win five sit and gos in a row will qualify for one of the lucrative jackpots. The final promotion is MTT Jackpots, which awards the top 200 players tournaments running through the promotion. Should they qualify, players will gain entry into a $250,000 Grand Final on January 3rd, which can also be bought into directly with 1,000 PartyPoints. On top of all that, customers can win a cool $1 million if they win any three daily tournaments.